Full Text Of President Buhari's Speech
I am immensely
grateful to God Who Has preserved us to witness this day and this occasion.
Today marks a triumph for Nigeria and an occasion to celebrate her freedom and
cherish her democracy. Nigerians have shown their commitment to democracy and
are determined to entrench its culture. Our journey has not been easy but
thanks to the determination of our people and strong support from friends
abroad we have today a truly democratically elected government in place.
I would like to thank President Goodluck Jonathan for his
display of statesmanship in setting a precedent for us that has now made our
people proud to be Nigerians wherever they are. With the support and
cooperation he has given to the transition process, he has made it possible for
us to show the world that despite the perceived tension in the land we can be a
united people capable of doing what is right for our nation. Together we
co-operated to surprise the world that had come to expect only the worst from
Nigeria. I hope this act of graciously accepting defeat by the outgoing
President will become the standard of political conduct in the country.
At the same time, I thank our other countrymen and women who
did not vote for us but contributed to make our democratic culture truly
competitive, strong and definitive. I thank all of you. Having just a few
minutes ago sworn on the Holy Book, I intend to keep my oath and serve as President
to all Nigerians. I belong to everybody and I belong to nobody. A few people
have privately voiced fears that on coming back to office I shall go after
them. These fears are groundless.
There will be no paying off old scores. The past is prologue.
Our neighbours in the Sub-region and our African brethenen should rest assured
that Nigeria under our administration will be ready to play any leadership role
that Africa expects of it. Here I would like to thank the governments and
people of Cameroon, Chad and Niger for committing their armed forces to fight
Boko Haram in Nigeria.
I also wish to assure the wider international community of
our readiness to cooperate and help to combat threats of cross-border
terrorism, sea piracy, refugees and boat people, financial crime, cyber crime,
climate change, the spread of communicable diseases and other challenges of the
21 st century.
At home we face enormous challenges. Insecurity, pervasive
corruption, the hitherto unending and seemingly impossible fuel and power
shortages are the immediate concerns. We are going to tackle them head on.
Nigerians will not regret that they have entrusted national responsibility to
us. We must not succumb to hopelessness and defeatism. We can fix our problems.
In recent times Nigerian leaders appear to have misread our
mission. Our founding fathers, Mr Herbert Macauley, Dr Nnamdi Azikiwe, Chief
Obafemi Awolowo, Alhaji Ahmadu Bello, the Sardauna of Sokoto, Alhaji Abubakar
Tafawa Balewa, Malam Aminu Kano, Chief J.S. Tarka, Mr Eyo Ita, Chief Denis
Osadeby, Chief Ladoke Akintola and their colleagues worked to establish certain
standards of governance. They might have differed in their methods or tactics
or details, but they were united in establishing a viable and progressive country.
Some of their successors behaved like spoilt children
breaking everything and bringing disorder to the house. Furthermore, we as
Nigerians must remind ourselves that we are heirs to great civilizations: Shehu
Othman Dan fodio’s caliphate, the Kanem Borno Empire, the Oyo Empire, the Benin
Empire and King Jaja’s formidable domain.
The blood of those great ancestors flow in our veins. What
is now required is to build on these legacies, to modernize and uplift Nigeria.
Daunting as the task may be it is by no means insurmountable. There is now a
national consensus that our chosen route to national development is democracy.
To achieve our objectives we must consciously work the democratic system. The
Federal Executive under my watch will not seek to encroach on the duties and
functions of the Legislative and Judicial arms of government.
The law enforcing authorities will be charged to operate
within the Constitution. We shall rebuild and reform the public service to
become more effective and more serviceable. We shall charge them to apply
themselves with integrity to stabilize the system. For their part the
legislative arm must keep to their brief of making laws, carrying out
over-sight functions and doing so expeditiously. The judicial system needs
reform to cleanse itself from its immediate past.
The country now expects the judiciary to act with dispatch
on all cases especially on corruption, serious financial crimes or abuse of
office. It is only when the three arms act constitutionally that government
will be enabled to serve the country optimally and avoid the confusion all too
often bedeviling governance today. Elsewhere relations between Abuja and the
States have to be clarified if we are to serve the country better.
Constitutionally there are limits to powers of each of the
three tiers of government but that should not mean the Federal Government
should fold its arms and close its eyes to what is going on in the states and
local governments. Not least the operations of the Local Government Joint Account.
While the Federal Government can not interfere in the details of its operations
it will ensure that the gross corruption at the local level is checked.
As far as the
constitution allows me I will try to ensure that there is responsible and
accountable governance at all levels of government in the country. For I will
not have kept my own trust with the Nigerian people if I allow others abuse
theirs under my watch. However, no matter how well organized the governments of
the federation are they can not succeed without the support, understanding and
cooperation of labour unions, organized private sector, the press and civil
society organizations. I appeal to employers and workers alike to unite in
raising productivity so that everybody will have the opportunity to share in
increased prosperity. The Nigerian press is the most vibrant in Africa.
My appeal to the media today – and this includes the social
media – is to exercise its considerable powers with responsibility and
patriotism. My appeal for unity is predicated on the seriousness of the legacy
we are getting into. With depleted foreign reserves, falling oil prices,
leakages and debts the Nigerian economy is in deep trouble and will require
careful management to bring it round and to tackle the immediate challenges
confronting us, namely; Boko Haram, the Niger Delta situation, the power shortages
and unemployment especially among young people. For the longer term we have to
improve the standards of our education.
We have to look at the whole field of medicare. We have to
upgrade our dilapidated physical infrastructure. The most immediate is Boko
Haram’s insurgency. Progress has been made in recent weeks by our security
forces but victory can not be achieved by basing the Command and Control Centre
in Abuja. The command centre will be relocated to Maiduguri and remain until
Boko Haram is completely subdued. But we can not claim to have defeated Boko
Haram without rescuing the Chibok girls and all other innocent persons held
hostage by insurgents. This government will do all it can to rescue them alive.
Boko Haram is a typical example of small fires causing large
fires. An eccentric and unorthodox preacher with a tiny following was given
posthumous fame and following by his extra judicial murder at the hands of the
police. Since then through official bungling, negligence, complacency or collusion
Boko Haram became a terrifying force taking tens of thousands of lives and
capturing several towns and villages covering swathes of Nigerian sovereign
territory. Boko Haram is a mindless, godless group who are as far away from
Islam as one can think of. At the end of the hostilities when the group is
subdued the Government intends to commission a sociological study to determine
its origins, remote and immediate causes of the movement, its sponsors, the
international connexions to ensure that measures are taken to prevent a
reccurrence of this evil. For now the Armed Forces will be fully charged with
prosecuting the fight against Boko haram.
We shall overhaul the rules of engagement to avoid human
rights violations in operations. We shall improve operational and legal
mechanisms so that disciplinary steps are taken against proven human right
violations by the Armed Forces. Boko Haram is not only the security issue
bedeviling our country. The spate of kidnappings, armed robberies,
herdsmen/farmers clashes, cattle rustlings all help to add to the general air
of insecurity in our land.
We are going to erect and maintain an efficient, disciplined
people – friendly and well – compensated security forces within an over – all
security architecture. The amnesty programme in the Niger Delta is due to end
in December, but the Government intends to invest heavily in the projects, and
programmes currently in place. I call on the leadership and people in these
areas to cooperate with the State and Federal Government in the rehabilitation
programmes which will be streamlined and made more effective. As ever, I am
ready to listen to grievances of my fellow Nigerians. I extend my hand of
fellowship to them so that we can bring peace and build prosperity for our
people. No single cause can be identified to explain Nigerian’s poor economic
performance over the years than the power situation.
It is a national shame that an economy of 180 million
generates only 4,000MW, and distributes even less. Continuous tinkering with
the structures of power supply and distribution and close on $20b expanded
since 1999 have only brought darkness, frustration, misery, and resignation
among Nigerians. We will not allow this to go on. Careful studies are under way
during this transition to identify the quickest, safest and most cost-effective
way to bring light and relief to Nigerians. Unemployment, notably youth
un-employment features strongly in our Party’s Manifesto. We intend to attack
the problem frontally through revival of agriculture, solid minerals mining as
well as credits to small and medium size businesses to kick – start these
enterprises.
We shall quickly examine the best way to revive major
industries and accelerate the revival and development of our railways, roads
and general infrastructure. Your Excellencies, My fellow Nigerians I can not
recall when Nigeria enjoyed so much goodwill abroad as now. The messages I
received from East and West, from powerful and small countries are indicative
of international expectations on us. At home the newly elected government is
basking in a reservoir of goodwill and high expectations. Nigeria therefore has
a window of opportunity to fulfill our long – standing potential of pulling
ourselves together and realizing our mission as a great nation.
Our situation somehow reminds one of a passage in
Shakespeare’s Julius Ceasar There is a tide in the affairs of men which, taken
at the flood, leads on to fortune; Omitted, all the voyage of their life, Is
bound in shallows and miseries. We have an opportunity. Let us take it.
Thank you Muhammadu Buhari
President Federal Republic of NIGERIA and Commander
in-chief-of the Armed forces
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